Summary: When Baby Beel goes away for the weekend, Oga and Furuichi find themselves alone together, for the first time in ages.
Furuichi Takayuki was catching up on his pre-university reading when he heard a great crash. Ahead of him was Hilda, looking as beautiful and dangerous as ever, crouching on top of his desk.
In the moment he scrambled to close his text book and get up, she had already reached his sofa, where he was sitting.
“Hilda san, I have a door--”
“Shut up. Time is of the essence. Are you doing anything this weekend?”
Furuichi’s eyes widened. Was she asking him out? His imagination began to run wild.
The blonde rolled her eyes. “Don’t get cocky. If you have plans, cancel them. You’re going to be on ogre duty.” As soon as she spoke, she grabbed the boy’s hand began pulling him towards the window.
“Wait, waaait, what do you mean? Did something happen to Oga!?” Furuichi tried pulling his hand back in panic. Hilda muttered “I wish” under her breath, too low for him to hear.
~~~~~
“I’m taking the master and mistress back to the demon world for the weekend,” Hilda announced upon entering Oga’s room.
Furuichi had been unceremoniously dumped on the bed, startling the brunet from his video game. Beel and Nico, who had been playing near Oga’s bookshelf, looked up to Hilda at the mention of their names.
“The hell?! Don’t come in unannounced!” Oga said, pausing his game.
“Madam Iris...ah...she misses her children and wants to spend time with them,” the wet nurse admitted, a light blush creeping up on her face. “And since she’s entrusted them to you, then the least we can do is allow her to spend time with them if she wants.”
“Why? She just met them,” Oga grumbled. “That sounds sneaky.”
“Wait.” Furuichi found his bearing and sat up in bed. “Wouldn’t Oga have to go as well?” Furuichi asked, the realization dawned on him.
Oga and Hilda had only returned a week ago, after crashing their graduation ceremony. They had been gone for a total of six months, two weeks and three days, something Furuichi had tried not to keep track of but inevitably did.
The idea that Oga would have to return so soon made the other boy’s heart ache, without reason. The last time the contractor went to the Demon World he had been told it was only going to be for a month. A weekend trip was no guarantee it would simply stay that way.
“I’m not going,” Oga spoke, breaking up Furuichi’s thoughts. “If she misses Beel and Nico she can come here to see them.”
Hilda shook her head. “Did any of you pay attention to what I just said? I’m taking the master and mistress back with me, you can just stay here and rot in front of the TV for the next three days.”
There was a silence.
“But Hilda-san,” Furuichi asked politely, “How can that work when the contract--”
“The Overload just mailed me this,” the blonde interrupted. From her pocket she pulled out a pair of bright green bracelets, the glow-in-the-dark kind you’d find at a kids’ party. “These are power inhibitors.”
“Dah!” Baby Beel’s exclaimed as Hilda reached down to pick him up. She fit the bracelet on his wrist. It instantly resized itself to fit the baby. As she got up, she tossed the remaining one to Oga.
“Once on, the bracelets temporarily severe the contract between human and demon,” she said.
Oga frowned as he put on the bracelet on his right hand. The moment it resized itself the zebub emblem faded from his arm.
“But doesn’t that mean Oga won’t be able to use his powers? What if something happens…” Furuichi said. He felt a surge of memories flood his conscious, the memories he had of Fuji’s initial arrival to Japan two years ago, and how powerless his friend was.
“Idiotichi, who do you think I am!” Oga interrupted, a small smile breaking out on his face. “Think of all the things I’d be able to do without kids!”
I’m trying not to, Furuichi thought to himself. The idea of the two of them being alone after two years of on and off babysitting was too rich with opportunity, but he knew his friend was not at all hardwired that way. Oga is probably going to sleep most of the weekend away any, he decided.
“How about it, Baby Beel? Ready to give your pop a little break?” he said, staring intently at the baby.
The child raised his chubby arm and saluted his foster father. “Dabuh!”
“Then it's decided. Come, little mistress, let’s get you packed for travelling!” Hilda picked Nico up from where she was playing. Nico, unlike Beel, was still too young to retain lasting relationship with people, and so she readily accepted Hilda’s embrace.
The wet nurse was at the doorway when she turned around and spoke. “Furuichi, you remember what I told you right?”
“Ogre du--Oh!” He stopped himself before Oga could pick up on it. So that’s why she dragged him over here. He wouldn’t have had it any other way really.
He knew, deep down inside, he’d always find a way to stay by Oga’s side, whatever the capacity.
~~~~~
“Holy shit! I can’t fucking believe it!” Oga exclaimed.
They were at the riverbend, having just witnessed Hilda disappear into Alaindelon. Alaindelon too, disappeared into the air. The two human boys were alone. Actually alone.
“Look, its nothing! I don’t feel a thing!” The contractor waved his arms in the air, as if to test the durability of the bracelet.
The silver haired boy grabbed his right arm to take a closer look. “That’s pretty incredible…” he murmured. Every trace of the zebub emblem had on his forearm was gone.
“Hell yeah! Think of all the things I could do this weekend!!” Oga said excitedly, leaning in to Furuichi.
“Yeah! Like…”
“Like…”
The childhood friends stared at each other, their grinning faces fading into confusion.
Furuichi couldn’t think of a single thing. His brain had gone completely blank. The chance of a lifetime, and he couldn’t even think of a single thing that sounded remotely interesting.
“Oi, my arm.”
He hadn’t realized he was still holding Oga’s hand near his heart. He hastily let go in embarrassment.
“I can’t think of anything,” he said sheepishly.
“Fuck!” The brunet cursed.
“Why don’t we get something to eat?” Furuichi suggested, realizing the time. “At least you won’t have to pay extra for Beel.”
“Ohh, good idea! I left my wallet at home anyway.”
You idiot! Why do I end up paying every time?! Furuichi thought. Nonetheless, they walked away from the riverbed and back into the city.
As they approached their usual croquette shop, Oga stopped, frowning to himself. After all, it was the middle of rush hour and a huge line had formed outside the little take-out. There was no excuse really, normally the boys get their croquettes way past lunchtime, usually when Beel had already had his fill of milk.
“Whatever. I was in the mood for pancakes anyway.” Oga promptly turned around and began walking away from there. “Or maybe a parfait? I’ve always wanted those.”
Furuichi shook his head. “You? Going to a patisserie? That doesn’t sound like you…”
“Hey, I eat from that place all the time! But a pateess…or whatever it isn’t baby friendly, definitely! I’d never take Beel there.”
“Yeah but I’m the one paying, remember!”
For once, Oga heeded Furuichi’s cries to go easy on his wallet. They found an appropriate patisserie half an hour later and got themselves a table.
“See,” he insisted as they sat down, “no children!” Furuichi’s cheeks turned pink the more he thought about. It almost felt like they left the kids at home and went out on a dat--
“Look! There’s discount if you order a parfait and waffles together!”
Furuichi nodded, not wanting to look up and give his embarrassment away. But Oga being overly excited was definitely endearing. Although, he wasn’t the one paying, Furuichi was. Damnit!
Oga reached over and shook his friend by the shoulders. “What’s up?”
“You know the discount special includes the most expensive parfait, right?”
“Didn’t you always talk about wanting to come to one of these places with a friend--”
“With a girlfriend--”
“Same difference, whatever.”
“If it’s the same difference does that make you my--”
“Excuse me,” a feminine voice said, “Are you ready to order?” She gave Furuichi a polite smile.
As the silver haired boy gave his order, from the corner of his eye he noticed Oga staring at him with his eyebrows furrowed.
Luckily, the food came relatively quickly and was delicious. It seemed some of the boys’ restlessness came from being hungry, and as they ate the conversation became lighter, more casual.
~~~~~
After they ate, Oga and Furuichi ended up passing the rest of the afternoon wandering around before heading away from the main city hub. Ironically they ended up near to where Hilda had left them: next to the river.
“Y’know you keep saying you want to do stuff you can’t do around Beel, but, all we’ve done are things you do with him anyway.”
“Not really.”
“Oh yeah?”
“If I had Beel and Nico with me, your hand wouldn’t be so damn sweaty right now!” Oga grinned. To his best friend’s dismay, they had been holding hands for a while now, and had only just noticed.
“Who’s telling you to hold it then?!” Furuichi attempted to slip his hand away from Oga’s. He wrangled his arm from his friend’s to no avail, Oga’s laughter filling his ears.
“Oi, I didn’t say I had a problem with it!”
“You don’t?” Furuichi stopped struggling.
The brunet shrugged. “As long as I get to tease you about it.”
“Hey! Not fair!” The other boy protested.
“Idiotichi, it’s just the natural order of things.”
Furuichi scowled at him. “Still,” he said, noticing their hands were still interlocked with each others, “I thought you didn’t like this sort of thing.”
“You’re….different, I guess.”
Furuichi glanced at Oga, but he had turned his head away so he couldn’t read his expression.
“Is that meant to be an insult or a compliment? Really…” The boy felt really curious. “Oga,” he said in a low voice. He squeezed his friend’s hand.
With his free hand he reached out and grabbed the other boy’s chin, turning him around and bringing him face to face to one another. In one motion, Furuichi leaned in and kissed him. He felt Oga press his lips back against his own.
Furuichi thought he’d struggle to speak when he pulled back from kissing, but instead the words came tumbling out of his mouth.
“I...didn’t think you’d be into that sort of thing either,” he admitted.
“With you, it’s--” Furuichi didn’t let him finish what he was saying, and pulled him in for a second kiss. This time, he felt the other boy’s arms wrap around his waist.
~~~~~
When they reached Oga’s house, Furuichi felt the burning need to bolt and run. They can always talk on their phones right? Or maybe even tomorrow?
“Wait a second.” Something had just dawned over the brunet’s face. “There’s nothing here.”
“This is where you live, Oga.”
“There’s nothing to do here anyway,” he broke into a grin. “And its the weekend right?”
“So?”
“So take me out again, you moron.”
Furuichi stared at him. He thought about his thinning wallet, before making his decision.
“How about my place?” he asked.
“...Ok? Sure.”
Furuichi felt his heartbeat race as they left the neighborhood. “You know, going back to my place after a date kind of suggests something, doesn’t it?” Oga rolled his eyes. “What?!” he asked defensively. “I didn’t mean it like that!”
Oga shook his head in disappointment. “This is why you never got a girlfriend.”
“Oh yeah, so what does that make you?”
“A best friend.”
Furuichi burst into laughter. The day was almost over, but the weekend had just begun. He was determined to make the most of it, whether it be with his best friend or boyfriend.
El estratega de la furia (y el ogro de la estrategia).
OgaFuru Week 2015.
Day 7: Role Reversal.
Summary: Cuando a Furuichi le encargaron que adoptara a un niño demonio, creyó que sería la tarea más complicada en su vida. Aunque mantener las manos de Oga lejos de su trasero resultó ser incluso más difícil.
Había decidido que no se alteraría y que se tomaría todo ese asunto con la mayor calma que le fuera posible.
Así que simplemente había tomado un espejo, la pinza de depilación y se dispuso a depilarse las cejas. El bebé, ¿cómo había dicho la rubia que se llamaba, Géiser o algo así?, parecía cómodo en su regazo, y al parecer le gustaba dibujar, así que lo dejó ahí; quizás cuidarlo no sería tan complicado después de todo. Sí, Furuichi estaba disfrutando de un momento de paz y tranquilidad suficiente como para emparejar sus cejas, entre su hermana menor tocando cada dos minutos a su puerta, los insufribles delincuentes en el colegio buscando pelea y el ruidoso de Oga constantemente sobre él, no encontraba tiempo que dedicarle a su refinado rostro.
Aunque esa armonía duró menos de diez minutos; la silenciosa mirada fulminante de Oga al bebé había evolucionado hasta un gruñido, y que el pequeño estuviera intentando imitar el sonido no ayudaba en nada. Oga era lo suficientemente listo como para saber que ese niño no era su hijo biológico, pero eso no quitaba que la pequeña fracción de él que era un imbécil no intentara buscar pelea con un bebé de dos años. Furuichi sólo suspiró y lo miró entornando los ojos. En tres, dos…
—Escucha, mocoso —uno. ¿En serio estaba mirando de manera tan amenazante a un bebé? Claro que sí—, no me importa el futuro rey de qué país seas, ni que técnicamente seas el hijo adoptivo de Furuichi.
—Ya déjalo, Oga, no es como si fuera a entenderte. —Para colmo, Kaiser había soltado su crayón y miraba atentamente al castaño, como si realmente entendiera todo lo que estaba diciendo.
—El trasero de Furuichi, es mío —apoyó el brazo izquierdo sobre la mesa donde dibujaba el bebé, que simplemente dijo “da-buh” y se inclinó hacia adelante—, así que no te acerques a él, ni nos interrumpas cuando te estemos buscando un hermanito.
El espejo impactó dolorosamente contra la cabeza de Oga, que se frotó la coronilla y lo miró estupefacto, Kaiser comenzó a reír y aplaudir, como si disfrutara del dolor que el otro estaba sufriendo.
—¡Mi trasero no es tuyo! —Estaba a punto de lanzarle un libro también, hasta que cayó en la cuenta de lo último que había agregado Oga, enrojeció en un instante y seguidamente le lanzó el libro—. ¿¡Y de qué hermanito hablas, imbécil, ambos somos hombres!?
—Eso no es lo que decías anoche. —La puntería de Furuichi disminuía un treinta y dos por ciento cuando estaba avergonzado (lo había calculado hace un tiempo) y esa fue la única razón por la que el libro terminó golpeando la pared y no la cara de Oga, que tenía una enorme y pervertida sonrisa ladeada, y ambas cejas elevadas.
—S-Sólo, cállate.
Cuidar de un rey demonio parecía extremadamente sencillo en contraste con los pervertidos y repentinos comentarios de Oga (y sus escurridizas manos que en cada momento posible buscaban su trasero).
Day 5 - au Although it's late again and I couldn't even finish it but I've always want to see an au which furuichi is a prince and a some kind of slum boy oga with natsume as a furuichi's butler hanging around and eat some korokkes.
Summary: Furuichi tendría que aprender a respetar a Oga si quería salir con él.
Furuichi estaba viendo a las chicas en el parque, él siempre miraba a las chicas cuando estaban en el parque. ¿Acaso no podía tener un poco más de tacto o al menos discreción?, ¡estaban en una cita!
O por menos lo estaban para la distorsionada mente de Oga, que afirmaba con total seguridad que aquello no era sólo la presentación en sociedad de bebé Beel, sino un importante avance en su relación de casi dos años, era la presentación en sociedad de su hijo adoptivo (a Oga seguía sin gustarle la idea de tener que cuidar del bebé, pero la idea de un hijo con Furuichi le llamaba mucho más la atención).
—¿No podrías ser un poco más discreto? —Bebé Beel intentaba subirse a la cabeza de Oga, mientras Furuichi babeaba por las madres jóvenes del parque y Oga sentía que estaba siendo traicionado en sus propias narices.
—¿De qué hablas? —Furuichi volteó a verlo por un pequeño momento, a veces le costaba entender lo que quería decir el castaño.
—De eso —señaló de manera general a las mujeres y Beel logró subirse finalmente a su cabeza—, siempre estás mirando a las chicas, no importa donde vayamos, deberías tenerme un poco más de respeto. —Intentó hacerse el desinteresado durante mucho tiempo, pero ciertamente las punzadas de celos comenzaban a carcomerlo por dentro. ¿Todas las personas se ponían así cuando se enamoraban?, no le molestaba ser posesivo, era el menor de la familia, todos los hermanos menores son posesivos de algo, pero le molestaba profundamente sentir celos, además, no tendría ni que sentirlos, Furuichi sólo debería mirarlo a él.
Rayos, ya estaba nuevamente con sus arranques de celos.
—En serio no entiendo de qué hablas —Oga lo miró por el rabillo del ojo, tenía las mejillas ligeramente rosadas y bebé Beel fingía que su cabeza era un caballo y él un caballero, o su equivalente en el mundo de los demonios. Simplemente miraba al frente, con sus brazos cruzados y los hombros tensos—, espera ¿estás celoso? —Furuichi no era un experto en el análisis de la gente, pero estaba seguro de ser un experto en las expresiones de Oga, después de todo sólo tenía tres: desinterés, enojo y regocijo cada vez que se le presentaba una pelea, así que ciertamente la evasión de la mirada y la extraña pose significaban algo distinto.
No entendía por qué podría estar celoso, pero que sus mejillas se hayan encendido más que antes y que sus uñas estuvieran presionando en sus bíceps, le decía que estaba totalmente en lo cierto. En serio, ¿por qué estaba celoso?, Oga no se ponía celoso, no tenía razones para hacerlo, él no sentía ese tipo de emociones, ¿verdad?
—Por supuesto que estoy celoso, idiota Furuichi. —Beel finalmente se bajó de su cabeza y volvió a sentarse en su regazo—. ¿Quién no lo estaría si su novio se pone a babear por otra persona, frente a él y cuando están en una cita? —Beel le dio la razón con un pequeño “da-buh”
¿Cita?, ¿novio?, esperen, ¿¡Oga en serio creía que él y Furuichi estaban saliendo!?, ellos no estaban saliendo, ¿qué le había hecho creer que estaban saliendo?, seguro siempre salían juntos (pero todos los amigos lo hacen), se besaban con frecuencia (luego de la cuarta vez, Furuichi comenzó a corresponderle los besos) y lo habían hecho unas dos o tres veces (incluso había accedido a ir abajo), pero eso no…
—Oh… —Ahora él también estaba rojo y acababa de entender que siempre habían actuado como una pareja, aunque de manera inconsciente—. Lo siento, no había notado que realmente estábamos saliendo. —Oga volteó a mirarlo y Furuichi se tapó el rostro con ambas manos—. Cielos, mi primer relación e hice sentir como mierda a mi pareja.
—Furuichi… —Oh, ahí estaba, esa era la voz; suave, casi en un susurro, sensual. Sus ojos se cerraron contra su voluntad y sus labios se estiraron inconscientemente, preparados para recibir los de Oga, que tenía su mano contra su nuca, acercándolo de manera impaciente para besarlo y seguir provocando en Furuichi ese sentimiento de “¿cómo es que nunca me di cuenta que estábamos saliendo?”, por suerte bebé Beel había encontrado una mariposa con la que entretenerse y Oga no tuvo que preocuparse por aplastarlo en cuanto atrajo a Furuichi por la cintura y se dispuso a incluir a su lengua en el asunto.
Sólo luego de haber suspirado, casi gemido, complacidamente fue que Furuichi lo recordó todo y abrió los ojos de par en par, no estaban en privado; estaban en el parque, todas las madres los miraban, bebé Beel se alejaba a gatas persiguiendo una mariposa y Oga no parecía percatarse de que Furuichi intentaba alejarlo de su cuerpo.
—¡Beel! —Dijo cuando por fin había cedido el castaño, que volteó a su izquierda y vio al futuro rey demonio alejarse tras una mariposa. Se pararon al instante y salieron corriendo tras él.
Sólo fue cuestión de unas pocas horas antes de que se esparciera el rumor de los padres adolescentes, pervertidos, gays y descuidados que no podían cuidar correctamente de un bebé, al que muy irresponsablemente siempre tenían desnudo.
Esa noche, el padre de Oga tuvo que pedir disculpas a la horda enfurecida de vecinos con todo su arsenal de posiciones, mientras el padre de Furuichi simplemente lloraba, pidiendo clemencia y asegurando que no recordaba que su hijo haya estado embarazado.
Summary: They say fools don’t catch colds. But Furuichi wasn’t a fool, and only Oga would’ve thought that letting two kids look after a sick person was a good idea.
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: OgaFuru
Word count: 6.2k
Notes: This is a joint collaboration between cows-quack and me for ogafuru week, day three: Nico. Thank you babe, I would have never gotten this finished without you!
Furuichi was sick.
He had no idea how it happened. He had felt perfectly fine before going to bed, and he hardly felt any different when he woke up the next morning. Sure, he suddenly had a sore throat and mild headache, but it was nothing a good shower couldn’t get rid of, right?
But by the time breakfast rolled around Furuichi was less hopeful. Not only did his throat and head still hurt, but he could feel his inner temperature rising at an alarming speed. Cooking over a hot stove did nothing to help his predicament. He was already sweating as he gingerly fried the croquettes; and he didn’t even have the energy to make a proper topping for the rice. Just bending down to get some furikkake packs from the drawer gave his head a rush.
By the time Oga arrived at his apartment with Beel and Nico in tow for their daily breakfast together, it took every ounce of Furuichi’s strength to drag himself to the front door and not collapse midway.
Oga swept him over as soon as he opened the door. “You look like shit.”
“Hello to you too,” Furuichi said as he rolled his eyes, absently raising his hand to greet the kids perched over Oga’s shoulder. “I already made breakfast, so hurry up.”
The croquettes that morning were more salty than usual – if the kids’ whining and Oga’s wrinkling nose as they ate was anything to go by; but Furuichi was too busy trying to find his bag to answer to Oga’s loud complaints coming from the kitchen. When Oga failed to get any sort of reaction, he followed after him.
“Oi,” Oga said somewhere behind him as he bent down to look under his bed. “You look like shit, Furuichi.”
“You already said that,” Furuichi said as he spotted his bag near the foot of the bed and stretched his arm toward it. “What’s your point?”
“You’re still going to leave, dumbass?”
Furuichi pointedly leaned on the bed before standing up, wincing from the pain in his temples despite his deliberate slow movements. “I have an exam today, Oga, I can’t just skip today because I’m feeling a little sick.”
“You look like death itself.”
“Gee, that’s nice.” Furuichi rolled his eyes and immediately regretted it when he felt a sharp pain on the back of his head. He’d have to buy an aspirin on his way to class. “Anyway, I really have to go. Close up after me when Beel and Nico are done, okay?”
“No.” Oga crossed his arms and moved in front of the door, blocking it. “You’re not going.”
“Quit joking, Oga! I have an exam today!”
“Just skip it then.” Oga grabbed Furuichi’s bag and tossed it aside. He shoved Furuichi onto the bed impassively. “You need to sleep,” he commanded, grabbing the blankets and covering Furuichi with them entirely.
“Stop that!” Furuichi immediately pulled down the covers to glare at him. “I can’t skip today! If I don’t go I could fail!”
“You won’t, you have make-up exams,” Oga said.
“Not every class offers make-ups, y’know?” He tried sitting up.
“Forget about it,” Oga said as he pushed Furuichi back down on the the bed. His head hit the pillows with a soft thump.
“Forget about it?!” Furuichi looked up at Oga with disbelief. Did Oga not understand that his chances of passing were riding on this test?
But Oga ignored him and called out to the kitchen.
“Beel! Nico! Get in here.” The two shuffled in with their rice bowls and bits of dried seaweed topping stuck to their chubby cheeks.
“Yeah, Dada?” Beel asked.
“Watch Furuchin. I’m gonna go to the pharmacy.”
“Oga, they’ll get sick!” Furuichi cried.
“They’re demons. They don’t catch human flus.”
“Wait, Oga!” But Oga was out the door before Furuichi could say anything more.
The siblings shuffled over to Furuichi’s bed and peered at him. Ever obedient, the duo climbed over the bed and began their task of watching Furuichi.
Beel was a dutiful son; upon being left in charge by Oga, he vowed to himself that he would make his dad proud. And his job for the day was to watch Furuchin. He was good at watching things so this would definitely be a piece of cake.
“You know,” Furuichi said after a few minutes of the kids sitting motionlessly on the bed, staring intently at him. “When Oga said to watch me he didn’t mean just to… stand and watch me.”
Beel reacted to that with astonishment. What did Oga actually mean then?
“I’m just gonna go to class since Oga’s still out,” Furuichi muttered, slowly righting himself in bed. Beel shook his head. He was sure that Oga wouldn’t want that. Just as he was about to say something, Furuichi doubled over, grabbing his stomach with one hand and his mouth with the other.
Nico cried in shock as Beel stood there frozen in place. A sniper? He didn’t see any!
But Furuichi leaped from the bed and rushed past them out of the room. A few moments later Beel and Nico heard the sound of retching. This must be the reason why Oga asked them to watch him! They exchanged worried glances and quickly made their way to the bathroom, but they didn’t have the courage to go past the open doorway; the loud heaving was scaring them away.
“No. Gotta watch ‘im,” Beel reminded himself aloud.
Nico nodded, determined, and then ran into the bathroom, clamping both hands onto her nose and screaming, “Yuck!”
Beel followed her in and wrinkled his nose. It smelled bad but he needed to be a man and suck it up. He walked carefully to where Furuichi was kneeling and bent over the toilet bowl, still retching. Beel patted his back in sympathy.
“There, there,” he said gingerly.
Nico toddled over and copied her big brother’s actions.
“Dere, dere,” she said.
Furuichi finally stopped vomiting. He heaved a sigh but he didn’t turn to face them.
“Fufu, spit milk?” Nico asked innocently.
“No, Nico. He hungover,” Beel answered sagely.
“You two go to the living room,” Furuichi said, his voice hoarse. “I-I need to clean up.”
“Dada said–”
“Just, go. I’ll be right there.”
The duo hung their heads and walked out.
Furuichi sighed as he gingerly got up. He was tired. His throat was burning and he wanted nothing more than to just sleep right here on the bathroom floor. Exhaustion was seeping into his body, heavier than before; but the bathroom stank and he had an awful taste in his mouth, so he summoned enough strength to clean up his mess and go to the sink to rinse out his mouth.
He felt a little guilty chasing out the kids like that, but he didn’t want them to see him like this. He groaned and grabbed a toothbrush, ready to scrub the taste out of his mouth. By now he could freely admit to himself that there was no way he would be able to make it to his exam. He didn’t know what he could do about it though. His professor was really strict and tended not to make an exception for anybody. What if he ended up failing the subject?
Furuichi staggered out of the bathroom and into the living room, where he found the demon siblings setting up a number of mismatched tea cups on the coffee table. Nico was stuffing tea bags into each cup, tongue stuck out in concentration. Beel was wiping his brow as if he’d accomplished a particularly hard job.
“Hey,” Furuichi greeted them.
“Fufu, tea!” Nico demanded as soon as she saw him, pointing at one of the cups.
“Wow, you two made tea?” Furuichi played along. He shuffled over and sat onto the couch, trying not to show his fatigue. Nico carefully picked up the cup and made her way to him. She held out the cup.
“Drink,” she said. Furuichi picked up the cup, smiling. He didn’t know how he’d drink it when there wasn’t any water and filled to the brim with tea bags, but he couldn’t just tell her that.
“Thank you, Nico.”
But when Furuichi made no motion to drink it she got onto her tiptoes and pushed the cup up. “Drink!”
“I will! I will!” Furuichi laughed. “I just got to wait for it to cool first.”
Satisfied with that answer, she turned back to the table and continued her job of stuffing tea bags in the rest of the cups. Furuichi hoped they wouldn’t try to force him to ‘drink’ all of it.
“Time to sleep,” Beel suddenly announced, grabbing the couch cushion and patting it with his tiny hand. Furuichi leaned over and ruffled his hair.
“I’ll sleep after I finish this tea, okay?”
There was no way he could sleep knowing he would fail an exam that was worth twenty percent of his grade. His stomach lurched and he wasn’t quite sure if it was his nerves or whatever he’d come down with. He wondered if his professor would reconsider if he brought a doctor's note. No, before that, he should send an email.
“Beel, can you bring me my phone?”
Beel saluted and ran off, leaving Furuichi with Nico. He wondered what was taking Oga so long. The pharmacy was only a few blocks away. Then again, he doubted he would be able to make the whole trip without fighting someone along the way.
Oga fished out Furuichi’s keys and opened the door to the apartment. He made his way down the hall, hoping that Furuichi hadn’t ran away or keeled over in the time he was gone. Instead he found Furuichi sitting in the living room and having some kind of tea party, Oga surmised by the number of cups spread over the coffee table, with Beel and Nico sitting at either side of him and staring at whatever he was doing in his phone.
“Why aren’t you sleeping?” Oga asked in annoyance as he approached them and set the plastic bag on the couch.
“I’m writing an email,” Furuichi muttered without looking up from the screen. “I figured the teacher might take pity on me if I sent him a message in advance.” He frowned as he reread his letter. “Maybe I should attach a picture for added effect…” he mumbled under his breath.
“Didn’t I tell you not to worry about that?” Oga said as he went towards the kitchen.
“Even if you say that, it’s not like I can just ignore I might– hmm?”
“Ding!” Nico mimicked Furuichi’s phone as it rung in his hands.
“It’s calling?” Beel asked.
“No, Beel, it’s just an email,” Furuichi explained with a bemused expression. It was too early in the morning for anyone to send him anything. Was it propaganda? Or maybe his mother needed something?
But to his surprise he found that the email was from the very same teacher he was just about to send a message to. Alarmed, he briefly wondered if he was getting scolded for not showing up to class today; but to his surprise the teacher had sent out a last minute announcement instead.
“You’re kidding… Class was cancelled!?” Furuichi blinked in astonishment at his phone.
“Cancel?” Beel asked as he peered at the screen, trying to read. “That good?”
“I– yes! My teacher said something came up and had to reschedule for Monday! I don’t believe this!”
“Told you you didn’t have worry,” Oga said as he suddenly appeared in front of Furuichi. He had come back from the kitchen with a glass of water in his hand, setting it on the coffee table. “Here.”
“Oh, thanks.”
Oga had brought back cold medicine from the pharmacy. Furuichi wasn’t sure if he really did just have a cold, but he figured it’d be good for taking care of the symptoms at least. As he swallowed two pills he idly wondered if Oga had had something to do with his teacher’s sudden email. He had never been out of commission before and the timing was just too convenient – Oga had taken a while in coming back, after all. He thought about asking him about it but quickly decided against it. If he had, he really didn’t want to know.
“Oh, should I have taken those on an empty stomach?” Furuichi suddenly recalled.
“What do you mean?” Oga looked at him sharply. “You ate breakfast.”
“I barfed my guts out after you left.” Furuichi chuckled. “Beel thought I was hung over.”
“Idiot.” Oga snatched the medicine, squinting at the warning label. Furuichi tried and failed to hide a smile. Just the fact that Oga was reading, actually reading for him, was kind of touching.
“The label says it should be fine,” Oga grumbles out after a moment. “But you should eat something else anyway. Nico didn’t finish her breakfast so you can take hers.”
Furuichi was about to argue that he might not be able to keep the croquettes down when he remembered he had also made rice. If it was just that, it would probably be fine.
“Alright,” he said as he gingerly stood up and went towards the kitchen. “Are you leaving for work now?”
“Yeah, I’ll just ask Alaindelon to help me again so I can get there on time,” Oga said as he checked the clock on the wall. He then turned to where Beel and Nico were still sitting on the couch. “Beel, Nico.”
Both kids immediately straightened and looked at their father, ready for new orders.
“Make sure he sleeps after he’s done eating, okay?”
“Yeah!!”
“Wait, what!?” Furuichi said as he stopped dead in his tracks. “Oga, are you serious!? You can’t leave them here! I’m in no state to take care of them!”
“They’re staying here so they can take care of you, idiot.”
“They can’t do that. They’re just kids!”
“I’ll send someone over. Don’t worry about them.”
“Oga, wait!”
But just like he did before, he was out of the apartment before Furuichi could stop him. Beel and Nico wasted no time to go after Furuichi, pulling him by his hands towards the kitchen. Sighing in resignation, Furuichi allowed himself to be steered towards the dining table.
The medicine started to take effect after finishing his second breakfast, so he went back to the living to and settled down for a quick nap. By the time that he was awoken by Beel and Nico’s laughing at the TV, he was feeling a little better, enough so that he felt like he could get up and do something instead of just dozing on the couch as the kids watched television.
“Do you kids wanna play?” he asked as soon as the credits rolled.
“No,” Beel said. “You’re sick.”
“Sleep!” Nico demanded angrily.
“I already did!” Furuichi whined. “Come on, it’s no fun for you guys if I sleep all day.”
“What’s we play?” Beel asked, easily convinced. He must have been bored.
“What do you wanna play?” Furuichi asked as he joined the on the floor.
“Hide and peek!” Nico squealed.
Furuichi smiled. That would be an easy game. No running involved, and not a lot of places the kids could hide inside the apartment either.
“Then how about I start? You guys have till ten to hide, okay?”
“Close eyes!” Nico exclaimed happily, jumping up and down. “No cheat!”
“I won’t, I promise!” Furuichi said as he willingly obliged. “I’m starting now, you guys ready?
Furuichi heard the kids squeal in excitement before running off in different directions, the sound of their footsteps fading after a few seconds. He began counting.
“One…”
Furuichi could hear distant giggles coming from his room. They were probably hiding under his bed.
“Two…”
By the time he reached ten Beel and Nico couldn’t hide their laughter anymore. Despite that, Furuichi pretended he hadn’t heard them. He went around looking in the wardrobe and behind the vanity – nothing wrong with a guy having one! – before looking under the bed. They squealed with excitement when he found them.
“Now, you hide,” Beel told Furuichi before running up to the wall and covering his eyes. Nico grabbed Furuichi’s hand and pulled him out of the room. They could hear Beel counting.
“One. Two. Free. Four. Five…. five… five...”
Furuichi covered his mouth so he didn’t burst out laughing. Nico angrily shushed him then pushed him towards the curtains. She ran to the other end and hid behind the curtain. Furuichi could see her feet clearly visible from the material she hid under, but he choked back another laugh and dutifully hid where he was told.
“Seven.” Beel just skipped over the six. “Eight. Nine. Ten. Leben… uh… ten!”
Beel ran out into the living room, right to the spot that they were hiding. Unlike Furuichi, he actually couldn’t tell where they were hiding even though it was painfully obvious, so he ran around the entire apartment searching for them. Furuichi found it hilarious the first ten minutes but after an hour and half he was just plain tired of waiting. If Nico’s sighs were anything to go by, she was also thoroughly exhausted.
Beel wandered into the living room once more, looking scared now. Furuichi began wonderingif he should reveal his hiding place when the young demon made a grab for the phone. He dialed in a number and waited, the oversized phone pressed against his ear.
“Hello, police?” he said. Furuichi yanked off the curtain with a panic.
“Beel, hold on!”
“There’s been in ab-ab-abduction!”
“No, there hasn’t!” Furuichi grabbed the phone and reassured the cop that it was just a case of hide and seek gone wrong. “You know, kids. They’re so quick to jump to conclusions,” he chuckled nervously.
“I have kids of my own,” the officer responded wistfully. “Three girls.”
“Oh, that’s nice.” Furuichi forced a smile. He really wanted to hang up right now but the cop kept talking to him.
“How about you? How many kids have you got?”
“Two, a boy and a girl,” Furuichi answered, not bothering to point out that they weren’t really his own kids.
“How old are they?” he asked.
“Um. Five and two.”
“Two’s a tough age.”
“Officer, I really should hang up now.”
“No! C’mon, let’s talk a little more. I’m bored as hell here.”
“I’m sorry!” Furuichi shouted, hanging up the phone. What was that cop thinking, holding up the line like that? It had taken all his willpower not to yell out a punchline right there and then.
“V is for victory!” Beel flashed the vulcan salute. Furuichi crouched down and hugged him. He could tell that Beel had actually been seriously freaked out just a few moments ago.
“Okay you win,” Furuichi said. Beel hugged him tightly, hiding a muffled yawn against Furuichi’s chest. Nico glared at the exchange.
“Oh, that’s right, you guys haven’t had your nap yet, have you?” Furuichi let go of Beel.
Nico yawned loudly in response, rubbing her eyes as she did; but Beel seemed determined to stay awake.
“Not tired!” Beel scoffed as he crossed his arms indignantly, despite his drooping eyes immediately giving him away. “Have to watch you!”
“It’s okay, Beel, I think I’m gonna sleep too while we’re it. And we can all share my bed, how about that?”
It seemed like Beel’s only reason to refuse a nap was the possibility that Furuichi might drop dead when he wasn’t looking, because no sooner had he heard of Furuichi’s idea that he rushed past him towards the bedroom and leaped towards the bed.
“Furuchin! Sleep!” he said as he patted the mattress fervently after getting comfortable under the covers.
“Right, right, I’m going.”
“Fufu!” Nico exclaimed once Furuichi sat on the bed, carrying something in her arms. “Read!”
Furuichi reached towards the large book she was holding. ‘The Demon and the Yople Alien’ it was called, one of the bedtime stories that Hilda had brought from the Demon World and had left in Furuichi’s apartment a few weeks ago.
“Oh, you want me to read it to you, Nico?” Furuichi asked with a smile.
“Pfft,” Beel scoffed in Nico’s direction as she made herself comfortable under the covers. “That for babies!”
But when Furuichi laid down between them with the book in his hands, he began listening intently anyway.
Furuichi had never read any of the books Hilda occasionally brought with her, but this one seemed pretty tame in contrast to all the demonic toys he had seen in the past. There wasn’t any killing, for one, nor any mention of senseless violence. Although the probing part had been really random, it was definitely not the weirdest thing he had seen come out of the Demon World. Beel and Nico seemed to enjoy it at least.
“And so, Hanzo and his alien friend Zera decided to go on a journey in search for adventures. The end.”
Furuichi shut the book, yawning. He made to put it on the bedside table but the book slid in his grasp, cutting his finger.
“Ow!” Furuichi dropped the book in surprise. “That’s sharp!”
He stared at his index finger, inspecting the paper cut. It was bleeding slightly but nothing he couldn’t live through. So much for Demon World books being harmless. Why would they even make the corners so sharp in the first place?
“Oh no!” Nico exclaimed in dismay. On Furuichi’s other side, Beel was already fast asleep. “Hurt!”
“It’s okay, Nico, there’s barely any blood coming out, see?”
He lowered his hand to show her and she squinted at his finger in concentration. “No hurt?”
“Just a little bit.”
She frowned for a moment, deep in thought, before breaking into an excited smile. “Kiss! Make better!” She nodded in approval at the genius of her own idea – Oga would be so proud of her! – and promptly bent down to plant a loud kiss on his finger. “Mwah!”
“Oh, wow, thank you, Nico,” Furuichi said with a smile. “It doesn’t hurt anymore!”
Nico beamed proudly as Furuichi leaned down to give her a kiss on her forehead as well. Nico yawned loudly soon after, however, so before anything else could happen, Furuichi carefully picked up the discarded book and placed it on the nightstand, allowed Nico to get comfortable between his arms, and immediately fell asleep.
Lamia was feeling frustrated. Oga had called her that morning saying that Furuichi was sick and looked like hell and to get there like her life depended on it. She had ditched any important meetings that day and rushed as fast as she could to Alaindelon’s place. He, unfortunately, wasn’t there. It took her half an hour to track down another dimensional transfer demon that would send her to the human world. However, he transported her to the wrong town and she had spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to get to Furuichi’s apartment.
It wasn’t until she had dropped down to her knees, sobbing in the middle of a crowded street that the universe took pity on her.
“I don’t have time for this,” she had cried. “Furuichi could be seriously sick!”
And just like that Alaindelon had appeared, bathed in a golden glow that almost seemed holy. He reached out his hand and pulled her to her feet. Within a few minutes the two of them were standing in the middle of Furuichi’s apartment.
“Furuichi?” Lamia called. “Where are you?”
“Takayuki,” Alaindelon peered in the kitchen. “We’re here to help you.”
They were met with silence. They were starting to get concerned by now, so they split up and checked the place; Lamia found Furuichi within a few minutes inside his room, sleeping on his bed all cuddled up with Nico and Beel. She sighed in relief.
Behind her a flash went off. She turned to find Alaindelon standing there with a camera in hand. She shook her head, sighing, even though she was tempted to ask him for a copy. He took a few more blinding shots, that had Furuichi turning away from them with an annoyed grunt.
“No flash photography,” she warned the demon as she stepped closer to Furuichi. She placed a hand on his cheeking, feeling his temperature. It was a little warm but she suspected that it must have been higher this morning. She pulled out an otoscope and checked his ears; surprisingly he didn’t wake up. He must have been really exhausted.
She frowned as she moved around him and continued her examination. It seemed like he had nothing but a flu, but she needed to wake him and make sure of all the symptoms. She brushed his hair out of his face with a gentle sigh. Alaindelon shoved past her and mimicked her actions.
“Poor Takayuki,” he whispered.
Furuichi’s eyes fluttered open and he glared at the two in front of him before turning away from them with a huff.
“I don’t want a guy to caress my face,” he groaned in disgust.
Lamia’s eyes widened when she spotted what was on his neck. She pushed Alaindelon and practically threw herself on the bed, waking Beel. She yanked Furuichi’s shirt collar revealing a red mark on his neck.
“What are you doing?!” Furuichi cried in annoyance.
“Want sleep!” Beel screamed, crawling out from under Lamia and to Nico’s side of the bed.
“What’s that on your neck?” Lamia asked, pulling out a magnifying glass and peering at his nape.
“Oh my!” Alaindelon said. “Is it a hickey?”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Lamia muttered angrily. She couldn’t believe it. What was something like that doing on Furuichi’s neck?
“Hey!” Furuichi sat up, offended. “What do you mean ridiculous?”
“You have the fly king seal on your neck,” she said.
Furuichi huffed. “What? Now you are being ridiculous.”
“Shaddup!” Nico screamed.
“Shut the fact up!” Beel shook his fist.
Furuichi got off of his bed and tucked the siblings back under the covers.
“We’re sorry,” he said. “You two go back to sleep, okay?”
He ushered Lamia and Alaindelon into the living room. When the two had walked out and he had properly shut the door, Furuichi shoved his fist under their faces revealing the demon crest.
“It’s on my hand,” he said, “remember?”
“There’s another one on your neck.” Lamia said plainly.
“No there isn’t.”
“Yes there is.”
“Prove it.”
“Very well,” Alaindelon interrupted. He pulled out his camera and took a picture of Furuichi’s neck and promptly showed it to him. Furuichi blinked at it in disbelief. There on his neck, in blood red, was the royal family crest. It was small, but it was definitely there.
Furuichi’s mouth hung open. It looked just like Oga’s, only smaller. He couldn’t process it. No, before that, he had no idea how this happened.
“I already have a crest.” He frowned. “Where did this come from?!”
“You tell me!” Lamia exclaimed, peering at his neck again.
“Could it be,” Alaindelon said as he zoomed in on the photo, “that you formed a subcontract with Beel?”
“Impossible.” Furuichi waved his hand about, showing his number zero crest. He knew that Beel was capable of using anyone who had the King’s Crest as a subcontractor; but Kunieda and Kanzaki hadn’t mentioned anything about another emblem appearing when they fought against the Fallen Angels. “This is proof of my loyalty to Beel and Oga. Why would another crest appear?”
“Nico then?” Lamia asked in a hushed tone.
“But she’s already contracted to Oga!”
Oga worked wordlessly. He wanted nothing more than to ditch work and check in on Furuichi but that wasn’t about to happen. He glanced at his wristwatch and sighed. He had another hour to go. Just one more hour. Next to him, Toujo was stacking bricks and humming a random tune.
He wiped his hand against his brow, sighing, when something caught his eye. To be more specific, it was the lack of something that caught his eye. He glanced at his left hand. It was gone. Nico’s royal crest was gone.
He inhaled sharply. It wasn’t the first time Nico had broken off the connection, but it still left him feeling worried. All those times that she had broken the contract was when he had been overwhelmed by her growing power on top of having to support Beel’s as well; but he had been feeling fine the whole day. Why would Nico forfeit the contract now?
Unless something had happened while he was gone.
“Toujo, cover for me.”
“Oh! Are you leaving early to check up on Furuichi, after all?”
Oga ignored him in favor of calling the dimensional transfer demon. “Alaindelon!” But after a few seconds of standing around and waiting like an idiot, it was clear that he wasn’t going to show up. He clicked his tongue in annoyance. Why did that bastard only listen to Furuichi?
“Lend me your bike,” Oga said, shoving his train pass into Toujo’s hand. He wasn’t about to leave him stranded here without any means of transportation. Being a dad did teach him a few things.
“Yeah, sure.” He handed over the keys. “Call me if you need me.”
Oga ran off to Toujo’s motorbike, and revved up the engine. He put on the helmet and frowned. Toujo must have a bigass head because it was too large for his normal sized one. He tossed the helmet aside and focused on getting there as fast as possible.
“Well, it’s unprecedented, but a demon is capable of changing contracts if they want to,” Lamia explained uncertainly. “In this case, if Nico thought that you would be a better contractor for her, for whatever reason, then…”
“Did you make a formal contract with the young mistress, Takayuki?”
“Of course not! I mean we only played hide and seek for a while and–” Furuichi froze as he suddenly remembered. “Wait, we did… I cut my finger on accident and Nico, uhm, kissed it to make it better.” He cleared his throat as his cheeks flushed in embarrassment. “I guess that’s when it happened…”
Lamia looked at him in astonishment. Had he not realized that he had presented her with blood? She thought that after all these years he would have been more knowledgeable about contracts. Then again, Furuichi tended to use contract tissues instead of actual blood contracts.
“Why did you let her do that!?”
“I didn’t think that’d be enough to create a contract! There was barely any blood! And she was already contracted with Oga!”
Well, Lamia couldn’t blame him for that. She couldn’t have expected that Nico would be changing contracts so easily either.
“What am I supposed to do now, then? Should we call Hilda?” Furuichi wasn’t sure if she’d be particularly happy at the news, but he couldn’t think of anything else at the moment.
“Well, I don’t know if there’s anything that needs to be done... If Nico has already made her choice then why should we–”
Lamia was interrupted by a sudden slam at the front door. The sound of heavy footfalls grew closer until Oga appeared by the doorway. His hair was a mess and he looked uncharacteristically agitated.
“Where’s Nico?” he asked bluntly.
“She’s sleeping,” Furuichi answered “What’s wrong? Why are you–”
“And Beel?”
“Also sleeping.”
“Where?”
“In my room,” Furuichi said. Oga marched towards the room and peered in, he seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.
“Did something happen?” Furuichi asked.
“S’nothing,” Oga muttered. He turned to Furuichi. “You better?”
“Yeah,” Furuichi nodded. “A lil’ bit.”
“It shouldn’t last more than three days.” Lamia reassured them sheepishly. After noticing the crest, she had completely forgotten the reason why she had come in the first place. But seeing Furuichi talk for the last minutes without problem was enough to know he would be fine. “Have you been able to eat anything, Furuichi?”
“Yeah… I threw up the croquettes I ate this morning, but after I took some medicine I ate a bowl of rice and– hey!”
“Oi,” Oga interrupted as he seized the back of Furuichi’s neck. “What the hell is this?”
“Er,” Furuichi began warily. Oga wouldn’t be mad for ‘taking’ his contract, would he? He disentangled himself from his grip to face him and cleared his throat. No point in beating around the bush. “That’s Nico’s crest. I don’t know why, but she made a contract with me.”
The effect was instantaneous. Furuichi might as well have punched him for how shocked he looked at the news.
Lamia and Alaindelon didn’t take this as a good sign.
“Oh wow, look at the time!” Lamia said, looking at her bare wrist as they inched towards the door. “I just remembered we had another appointment after this! We’ll be back in a couple of hours okay bye!!”
The two ran out and shut the door behind them. Furuichi was sure they were lying through their teeth; no one wanted to face Oga when he was angry. He also knew the two well enough to know that they were probably pressed up against the door, listening to see when it’d be safe to come back.
“Are you mad?” Furuichi asked nervously.
Oga remained quiet for a few moments before his shoulders finally loosened up. “Not really.” Oga shrugged. “Nico’s always been picky about who her contractor was.”
“You never told me that,” Furuichi said. “I thought she was really attached to you.”
“She’s my kid. She has to be attached.”
Furuichi smiled at that. It was sweet that Oga referred to them as his kids. Before Beel, Furuichi never thought that he would ever see Oga become a father. He never had an interest in women or the domestic life. He was the type of shitty bastard that would make people bow to him. But here he was, father of two. A man who proudly wore a homemade ‘#1 Dad’ shirt that Beel had made for him. It was surreal.
“But you’re stronger than me,” Furuichi protested.
Oga glared at him. Furuichi paled. Had he hit a nerve? It was true though, Oga was unbelievably strong. And as a contractor, Furuichi was lacking on the strength department. Why would Nico prefer a downgrade?
Oga clearly did not agree. “Idiot. Are you still on about that? I thought Hecadoth had already told you, having muscle is not all there is to it.”
“I know that, but–”
“Nico is not dumb. She wouldn’t choose a loser for a contract.”
“Yeah, but she’s two!”
“Huh?!” Oga grabbed Furuichi, putting him in a chokehold. “You wouldn’t dare say anything bad about my little girl, would you, Furuichi-kun?”
“I only said she was two!” Furuichi protested, trying to get Oga to release his grasp.
“Give up.” Oga tightened his hold. “You’re her contractor now.”
“I give! I give!” Furuichi batted at Oga’s arm. “Is this how you treat a sick person?? Let go!”
Oga let go, looking satisfied, but he turned his attention to the TV instead of saying anything more. Oga flopped down on the couch, flipping the channels randomly. Furuichi rubbed his sore neck but didn’t complain, he just sat next to Oga with a huff. Oga didn’t spare him another glance.
“Just goes to show how much you care,” Furuichi muttered indignantly.
“Stop bitching already.”
Furuichi sighed, leaning back on the couch. He wondered when Lamia was coming back – maybe she wasn’t waiting outside of the door after all and decided to stay away as far as possible just in case. He wanted her to use some of her demon magic to heal him fast; he would have a lot of revising to do for the exam soon.
“Aren’t you going home?” Furuichi asked Oga.
“The kids are still asleep. Might as well stay for dinner.”
“You better not be expecting me to cook!”
In response Oga sprawled himself over the couch, resting his head on Furuichi’s lap.
“Hey!” He shook his fist in anger, trying to resist the urge to punch Oga in the face. “I’m not your pillow, you bastard!”
Oga ignored him and made himself comfortable. “We’ll just ask Hilda to come over and make us something.”
Furuichi mumbled under his breath, but he made no attempt to pry Oga off of him. He hadn’t managed to sleep for that long before Lamia had arrived and he was too tired to deal with Oga’s antics. He looked down at Oga with a sigh; the fool was laughing at something on TV without a worry in the world.
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” Furuichi said warily. “I mean, I know she’s gotten better lately, but I don’t know if my stomach is up to it…” Furuichi absently brushed his fingers through Oga’s hair, wondering what Hilda could possibly make for them. Maybe he could persuade Lamia to help with dinner when she came back. “Speaking of which… who’s gonna tell Hilda about all of this?”
There was an awkward pause as Furuichi’s words sunk in.
This started off as summary and head cannons, but kind of spiraled.
Summary: Oga and Furuichi are from the town of Ishiyama, The Stone Mountain Town, and they meet when they are 10 years old. They collect their starter Pokémon on the same day, and decide to travel together.
They stay together for the next six years, collecting badges, catching Pokémon, and becoming stronger.
Word count: 2000 words.
Oga’s starter - Pikachu: Nicknamed Beel
Nature: Bold
Characteristic: Nods off alot
Beel does not like to be in a pokéball, preferring to travel on Oga’s back or head.
Furuichi’s starter - Eevee (Espeon) : Nicknamed Alaindelon.
Nature: Bashful
Characteristic: Somewhat of a clown
Alaindelon evolved earlier than expected, but was so happy with his new owner he couldn’t wait for an evolution stone. Furuichi was a little disappointed, and decided to capture more Eevees, so he could have one of each Eeveelution.
Oga’s Hitmonlee: Nicknamed Kanzaki
Nature: Brave
Characteristic: Likes to fight
Oga’s first capture, it initially defeated Beel, so Oga fought it himself. Kanzaki was reluctant to be mastered, but soon grew to respect Oga after he trained with it.
Furuichi’s second Eevee (Umbreon): Nicknamed Lamia
Nature: Sassy
Characteristic: Hates to lose
Furuichi’s first capture, it was discovered by Alaindelon who knew Furuichi wanted another Eevee. Lamia misbehaved often, but follows battle instructions after Furuichi demonstrated knowledge of the opponent’s weaknesses. Lamia evolved into an Umbreon the night before reaching an evolution stone trader. Lamia was surprised and embarrassed to become an Umbreon, and denies her high friendship with Furuichi. Alaindelon teases her for this.
After a year, the boys return to Ishiyama, to challenge their gym leader for the Boulder badge. Both receive it. In the year they have become very close friends, they learn each other’s strengths, weaknesses and goals. They stay with their own families for a few days, but each finds that their family’s house is no longer their home. Despite Furuichi being the articulate one, it is Oga who first puts it into words: that for Oga, ‘home’ is where ever his Pokémon and Furuichi are. It’s not the first time the two boys hug, but it is the first time Furuichi kisses Oga, even if it is just on the cheek.
Their journey continues across the continent.
Furuichi is still determined to have one of each eeveeloution, so only fights wild Pokémon for training. He doesn’t find any wild eevees, but doesn’t give up hope. Lamia and Alaindelon become very strong. Oga only wants strong Pokémon, and won’t capture anything that can’t hold up for long against Beel or Kanzaki. He and Kanzaki spar together while Beel sleeps. Both grow stronger.
Oga’s Heracross: Nicknamed Himekawa
Nature: Calm
Characteristic: Thoroughly cunning
Easily defeated Beel, who is scared of bug type, but was defeated when Kanzaki kicked him onto his back like a turtle. Humiliated, it attacked in the night for revenge, bringing an entire swarm of smaller heracross with it. Oga admired its sadism and caught it. Himekawa was humiliated by this and kept pranking the group as revenge. It only stopped when Lamia threatened to eat it, and Alaindelon said he would make it look like an accident.
Oga’s Machop (Machamp): Nicknamed Toujo
Nature: Gentle
Characteristic: Good endurance
Caught when only a machop, Toujo was strong enough that both Oga and Furuichi had to send in their whole parties to defeat it. Finally defeated by Beel and captured by Oga, it quickly evolved into a powerful Machamp. It is secretly Oga’s second favourite, after Beel.
Watching Oga and Beel grow stronger, Furuichi decided he would need a ground type to ever beat the pair. As there are no ground eeveelutions, he decided to break his own rule. The group meets a breeder who has starters ready to adopt.
Furuichi’s Turtwig (Torterra): Nicknamed Nico
Nature: Impish
Characteristic: Highly curious
Furuichi chooses Nico, knowing she will eventually grow to be immune to Beel’s electric attacks. He feels a little guilty raising her just to beat Oga, but Alaindelon and Lamia explain the situation to her, and she considers it a great honour to be chosen. She quickly sets about tackling Beel whenever she is out of her ball, which is every meal time.
Oga’s Torchic (Blaziken/Mega-Blaziken): Nicknamed Kunieda
Nature: Bashful
Characteristic: Strong willed
Not knowing Furuichi’s long term goal, Oga decided to choose a fire type and have the advantage over grass type Nico. Kunieda was the first fire type he saw, but his greeting of “You’re perfect – wanna be mine forever?” accidentally secured the little torchic’s heart. In a battle minutes later, Nico won. Since then Kunieda trains tirelessly to become stronger for Oga. She can be jealous of his attention and had been known to set Furuichi’s things on fire. She stopped when Lamia threatened to eat her, and Alaindelon said he would make it look like an accident.
Six years after their journey began, Oga and Furuichi have all the badges needed to enter the Pokémon tournament.
Furuichi enters with his umbreon and espeon, but nearly misses his first match while talking to another trainer from Ishiyama, Miki. Miki had been training in the mountains outside of Ishiyama when he had seen dragons. Furuichi just barely made it to the match. He wins, but is knocked out in his second match by a steel type trainer named NeNe. Furuichi is disappointed, but is too excited at the idea of dragons near their hometown to really be bothered. Oga is not particularly interested, and focused on his own matches. Furuichi’s near constant talk of Miki and dragons, even as they train or play with their Pokémon, starts to irritate him. He is only soothed by the ‘Good Luck Hugs’ he received from Furuichi and Kunieda before each match.
Oga wins almost all his matches with his pikachu, machamp and hitmonlee. His closest match was against a trainer named Takamiya in the quarter finals. Takamiya doesn’t seem to care when his Pokémon are injured, and it is through mutual agreement with his Pokémon that they will not tolerate losing to such a jerk, that they win. Takamiya doesn’t seem overly upset by his loss.
In the semi-finals Oga is defeated. An older trainer, named Saotome beats him easily with one dragonite. After the match, Oga agrees with Furuichi that they should go look for dragons, having learned the power of one first hand. Seeing how happy this makes Furuichi makes Oga happy.
They return to Ishiyama, and then cross into the mountains beyond the village. The journey takes weeks. Few travellers have come this far, so every mountain they explore leads them further into unknown lands. They battle rock Pokémon daily, then eventually ice type the longer they travel. Kunieda evolves to a blaziken while Nico remains a grotle, as she refuses to battle in the snow.
The trainers always shared a tent, but now they share blankets too in order to keep warm, while their pokémon sleep safe in pokéballs, even Beel. Furuichi knows they may eventually have to leave Kunieda out for warmth, but he has yet to bring it up. For now, he’s warm enough sleeping almost naked next to Oga.
Exactly three weeks after entering the mountains, Oga stepped on a dragon.
It was a tiny little gible, smaller than Beel, but it took great offence at being stepped on, and quickly attacked Oga’s shoe, before running down the mountain. Lamia tracked the gible, and led the party to a cliff. The valley below was filled with dragon Pokémon. For almost a year they remained in the valley. There was plenty of fruit and water springs around. The dragons were cautious at first, but became used to the new party, and the trainers eventually discovered that this was a nesting ground, not just a gathering place.
Furuichi’s Dratini (Dragonair): Nicknamed Hecadoth
Nature: Serious
Characteristic: Hates to lose
Hecadoth and its siblings had been observing the trainers when they came to a large pool to swim every day. It grew curious and swam out to play them. Hecadoth enjoyed himself so much that when Furuichi captured him, he was hardly offended at all. At night he likes to curl up in Furuichi’s lap, and will sulk if another Pokémon is there first.
Furuichi’s Axew (Haxorus): Nicknamed Agiel
Nature: Quirky
Characteristic: Highly persistent
Not so much captured as adopted, Agiel followed Kunieda into their camp one evening and never left. Wanting to be like Kunieda, Agiel brought a pokéball to Furuichi, so that she could sleep in a ball too. Agiel splits her affecting between Kunieda, and Furuichi (who feeds her).
Furuichi’s Tyrunt (Tyrantum): Nicknamed Jabberwock
Nature: Bold
Characteristic: Likes to thrash about
Was discovered while training with Agiel and Hecadoth. The tyrunt had attacked from a ledge above them. Both Agiel and Hecadoth fought him, but it was Nico who finally defeated Jabberwock, having become bored watching the three dragon babies fighting. Jabberwock is devoted to Furuichi, who protects him from Nico.
Oga’s Zweilous (Hydreigon): Nicknamed Hilda
Nature: Adamant
Characteristic: Strongly defiant
After five battles over two days, Oga managed to capture Hilda. He decided to capture her after she tried to eat Tojou. Leaving the traumatised machamp with Furuichi, Oga had used Beel and Kunieda to track, battle and wear down Hilda. By the time they returned two days later, Hilda had bonded with Beel, however she is still wary of Oga and Kunieda.
Oga is in such a good mood that night, that Furuichi is swept up in the moment and kisses him. It’s very different to the kisses of their childhood, and things between them change. It’s the first kiss that Oga returns, and it’s the first night that all the Pokémon sleep outside the tent.
Six months later, and they have been in the valley for over a year. The baby dragons have grown stronger. Agiel and Hecadoth have evolved, as has Hilda. Most significantly, Nico has evolved to a torterra, and glories in her immunity to electric attacks. Beel fears her more than ever, and goes to Hilda to hide. Oga makes him fight Nico every time. Beel gets faster and stronger, but Nico always wins.
The relationship between the trainers has evolved as well. They are intimate most nights, and in the hidden valley they are free to make love in the day light too. After watching Furuichi surf with Hecadoth, Oga goes down on him in the shallows. After a sparring session with Toujo or Kanzaki Oga likes to be taken roughly from behind by Furuichi while his blood is still racing. Furuichi loves to oblige.
After a year in the valley, they discuss returning. Oga wants to test how strong his Pokémon have become on new challengers. A year fighting dragons has made his team very powerful, and he’s ready to face the world’s strongest trainers. Furuichi’s Pokémon have grown too. His dragons develop quickly, but Alaindelon, Lamia and Nico have also flourished. However he would rather stay in the nesting valley, living with Oga and their Pokémon for longer.
The decision is ultimately taken from them one morning, when the valley is thrown into chaos, with dragons screeching and flying in all directions. When the trainers reach the source of the noise, they find an injured Latias, and an empty nest. There is a figure escaping in the distance. Lamia immediately tracks it, but it gets away on a flying Pokémon.
Furuichi agrees to leave the valley immediately to reclaim the egg, and the trainers and their Pokémon follow. It’s almost a year before they get their first real clue. While stopping at a Pokémon centre, they watch the live broadcast of the pokémon tournament. The winner and new champion’s face appears on the screen, along with his team of six: a Sableye, Mismagius, Rotom, a Giratina, an Ampharos nicknamed Lucifer, and a Latios.
Takamiya Shinobu.
With a name and face put to the thief, Oga and Furuichi set out on the next big adventure. Will they defeat the evil Takamiya and return the Latios to its home? Will Beel ever defeat Nico? When will Oga and Kunieda learn mega-evolution? Find out on the next exciting episode of POKéMON AU.
